Alcohol 101: Belly Fat, Bad Sleep and the Long-Term Cost of Drinking

One glass of wine at dinner. That's all it takes now to wreck your sleep, spike your anxiety, and leave you feeling like garbage for two days. It's not in your head, and it's not about willpower. Your body processes alcohol completely differently now, and almost nobody has explained that to you.

This episode is part of Tamsen's series breaking down the topics from her New York Times bestselling book How to Menopause, one conversation at a time.

This week it's alcohol, and Tamsen gets honest about her own relationship with it. She was never a big drinker, but a habit crept in over the years, and after the pandemic she realized one glass she didn't even really want was quietly costing her sleep, workouts, mood, and how she felt in her own skin.

She has not quit drinking, and she's not telling you to. She's breaking down what the leading doctors she's interviewed have taught her about what alcohol actually does to your body in midlife, so you can decide for yourself.

Inside the episode:

• The real reason one glass at 48 hits like five did at 32, and why you're essentially still drinking it the next morning
• What's happening in your body at 3 a.m. when your eyes pop open with your heart racing
• The hidden connection between alcohol and hot flashes, belly fat, and that next-day anxiety you haven't been linking to your Friday night wine
• What every doctor in the studio has told Tamsen about alcohol and breast cancer risk, and why this one is actually within your control
• The single question that changed Tamsen's drinking: what are you actually reaching for?
• Word-for-word scripts for the social pressure, the pushy friend, and the partner conversation
• Why tracking your drinks for one month with zero judgment might change everything

You don't have to quit. You don't have to call yourself anything. But if your body has been trying to tell you something, this episode will help you finally hear it.